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Success may be defined as the achievement of something desired, planned, or attempted. However, in some cases, success may not be achieved. Government statistics show drastically growing rates of people taking antidepressant medications. Between 1997 and 2002 the number of Americans taking at least one antidepressant increased by over 50%, from 5.6 percent to 8.5 percent. The rate of antidepressant usage in the “near poor” almost doubled during the same period. Meanwhile in 2001, prescription spending for mental health disorders topped $14.3 billion, becoming the second leading expenditure related to a prescribed drug purchase behind high blood pressure which was number one. Spending on diabetes, asthma and high cholesterol ranked third, fourth and fifth respectively. Overall spending on the top five household-reported conditions (high blood pressure, mental health disorder, diabetes, asthma and high cholesterol) related to a prescribed drug purchase, quadrupled in the 14-year period between 1987 and 2001, to a total cost of $55.9 billion even when adjusted for inflation.
These trends indicate that Americans are struggling to maintain good physical and mental health and happiness. Being the wealthiest nation in the world does not mean that every one of us is wealthy. One thing that certainly underlies the statistics of how wealthy we are as a nation is the degree of stress and strain within our society.
When one earns a lot of wealth they have to work that much harder to maintain that wealth. Global competition is much greater. Many manufacturing jobs have been exported in the last few decades creating many changes within our society. America has gone from being a manufacturing nation to a one in which most of the jobs are in the computer, health, and service industries. The change in jobs has created a great migration of many to the Sunbelt states creating a disruption of communities and families.
Today's success also means that many people in the U.S. are working longer hours in jobs they dislike or hate, thereby promoting greater stress. These people are increasingly feeling trapped and helpless. For example, the combination of low food prices and increased stress has been shown to promote increased eating. The increasing trends for food consumption and obesity appear to correlate with increasing trends for high cholesterol and diabetes. Between 1987 and 2001, there has been a greater than four fold increase in adults with high cholesterol while the rates for adults with diabetes increased by 46 percent during that same period. Heart disease continues to rank the number one cause of death in our society.
Therefore, there is a need for a system and method for teaching success.